Miriam Gets a Permanent Job
by GKHJ123
Summary: After her brief stint at the Beeper Emporium, Miriam decides to get a job for herself. Takes place after "The Beeper Queen." AUTHOR'S NOTE: Rated T for later chapters. AUTHOR'S SECOND NOTE: Now added "A Mother's Thanks for her Daughter" as the epilogue to this story.
1. Miriam Realizes Her Destiny

Disclaimer: I do not own Hey Arnold or its characters. They are properties of Nickelodeon and Viacom.

Miriam Pataki gets a permanent job

By GKHJ123

Chapter 1

Miriam Realizes Her Destiny

It had been a day since Miriam Pataki ended her brief run as head of Big Bob's Beeper Emporium. During that time, she felt like the person she used to be: fun, happy and seemingly enjoying her life. However, she threw that all away when she married her husband, Bob. As she saw her husband walk out the door on his first day from his back injury, she told him that a few colleagues from his work were sharks. As she shut the door, her youngest daughter Helga, turned to her.

"Mom," asked Helga. "Do you think you'll try to get another job?"

Miriam was surprised at this question. You see, Miriam's time at the beeper emporium almost ruined her relationship with Helga, but she promised her that she would always be there for Helga.

"Honey, I've been considering it," Miriam replied.

"But, I want you to remember that I am still going to be there for you, and what I said last night is something I will take back."

Helga smiled at this, knowing that what Miriam the night before when she told Helga to buzz off from the Beeper Emporium was taken back.

"I know, mom," she said as they walked into the kitchen.

"Before you took dad's place, you were always moping around the house, feeling sorry for yourself. I always called you 'Miriam' because I felt like there was no mom around for me. When you went to the Beeper Emporium, I saw the mom I used to know back."

Miriam picked up a smoothie from the fridge and sat down at the table.

"I'm glad you feel that way, honey," she said.

"Working at the Beeper Emporium showed me that I need something in my life to succeed at and because of it, I can be the leader that I have always wanted to be: working with company leaders and customers, it will be dreams coming true for us."

"Well, maybe you should start looking now," suggested Helga as she picked up her backpack for school.

"A job doesn't come in a day you know. Besides, who wants to sit around and watch soap operas all day? See you later."

Helga kissed Miriam and walked out the door for school.

As soon as the door closed, Miriam picked up a newspaper from the living room and sat down to read the want ads. She knew that she needed something a little smaller than her Beeper stint, something that involves dealing with customer relations and selling similar products. She then realized that she had a few friends working at the retail giant, Wal-Mart.

"I've already proven to B that I can work," Miriam said to herself.

"What I need is something like a few days a week, just anything."

Later that day, Miriam went to the public library and filled out an online application. Now, she had to wait for the phone call to set her up for an interview. When the Pataki's sat down for dinner that night from his first day back, Miriam told Bob about applying for work.

"Miriam, I thought you were going to stay home and be a housewife," he flounced. "You had your fun filling in for me; now get back to what you used to be doing."

Miriam wasn't affected by what he said at all, neither was Helga.

"Dad, I think mom is happy to be working," Helga said. "When she filled in for you, I saw a different person in her."

Miriam smiled at this.

"At the same time," Helga continued. "Her brief leadership role also saw a change in me."

Bob was very surprised at this remark. Normally, Helga was always grumpy, always feeling like the black sheep of the family. Now, Miriam's stint was somewhat seeing a change in her.

"That's right, Bob," Miriam added. "Have you ever seen the TV show 'All in the Family'?"

"Of course I have," Bob replied. "Archie worked and Edith took care of the house."

Miriam took a sip of her smoothie and brought her dinner to the kitchen sink.

"Maybe you haven't seen all the episodes," she said. "Edith eventually got a job at a retirement home and she was happy being around the inhabitants there. But most importantly, she felt like she was making a strong contribution to society and her family."

Bob was surprised at how his wife and daughter were acting in front of him. It seemed to him like there was something in them he had not seen before in his life. After a few moments, Bob responded to what his wife said.

"Hey, if it's that important to you," he said. "Then you should get a job and prove me wrong about what I said about you being a housewife."

Bob then had one more question for his wife.

"Where is this job you are looking at anyway?"

"I am applying for a job at Wal-Mart," Miriam responded. "They sell items of all sorts, it's a union job and many of the customers are regulars."

Just then, the telephone rang and Miriam got up to get it.

"Don't get up," she called. "It's for me." Miriam walked over and answered.

"Hello?" she began, listening to the person on the other line. "Yes, this is Miriam. You read my application? That's great, when do you want to have an interview? Tomorrow morning at 8:00am? I'll see you then, thank you very much."

Miriam hung up the phone and smiled happily.

"I got an interview," she cheered.

"That's great mom," Helga replied happily. "We're so proud of you."

Helga hugged her mom, but Bob did not respond to the news lightly.

"Miriam, I hope you prove me wrong about what I said," he replied. "Soon, you will probably be begging to come back as a housewife."

Miriam ignored what he said and focused her attention on Helga.

"Oh, there is so much to do," Miriam said excitedly. "What am I going to say? What am I going to wear?"

Helga placed a hand on her mom's shoulder. "Don't get excited mom," she reminded her. "Why don't I offer you my support and help you get ready for your interview tomorrow? We have all night you know."

"All right, you can help me," Miriam said happily.

As they headed upstairs, Bob looked up and saw his wife and daughter happily being around each other for the first time in a long time. Although he seemed bitter about it at first, deep down, he had never seen his wife this happy since they married almost 20 years ago. But, it was going to take time and a whole night to show for it.


	2. Interview Preparations

Chapter 2

Interview Preparations

After being set up for the interview the next day, Helga and Miriam walked up to Miriam's room where they spent most of their time doing business work and homework together while she was at the Beeper Emporium. Sitting down on the bed, Miriam handed Helga a piece of paper with a list of questions on it. "List of questions asked at an interview?" Helga read. "Where did you get this mom?" "The application asked me to write that down so I can practice for the interview," responded Miriam. Looking at the paper together, it had down 10 questions written on it:

1. How have you heard about us?

2. Did you have any prior working experience prior to applying for Wal-Mart?

3. Are you friendly with customers?

4. What is your availability?

5. Can you work in a team of peers?

6. Are you willing to abide by company rules?

7. Are you willing to submit to a drug test?

8. Are you willing to wear a blue Wal-Mart vest?

9. Are you willing to learn in areas beyond your postion if need be?

10. Are you willing to have fun in our company?

"They seem pretty self-explanatory," said Helga. "I think with a little practice, you can ace this."

Miriam realized that some of the questions were pretty sensitive to her. She was an alcoholic during her time as a housewife and submitting to a drug test would not be easy for her in such a short period of time.

"You're right, Helga," Miriam said. "I do need to change and this would be the first big step for me. At the same time, I want to prove to your father that I am capable of being a working mom. 'All in the Family' taught me that women are always underpaid and that they can do more than just be around the house all day."

Helga soon realized the situation that her mother was in; knowing how much freedom she had during her brief time at the Beeper Emporium, she wanted to prove to Bob that she can be a strong worker as much as him.

"You may not realize this Helga," Miriam continued. "But, I used to be perfect: I had a promising swimming career ahead of me, I was a champion at rodeo, I could do anything I could dream. But, I threw it all away when your father and I got married. I enjoyed being married, but I never got to do what I wanted to do, which was make a contribution to not just this family, but to society and build myself a little confidence."

"So, dad basically held you back to just taking care of Olga and me?" Helga asked.

"Yes," replied Miriam. "That's why I need you to help me achieve my goal and prove your father wrong."

Helga smiled at this and they hugged again.

Miriam then got up and walked over to her closet. She found her cranberry business suit that she wore at the Beeper Emporium hanging at the far end of the closet. Taking it out, she hung it on her bedroom door and examined it.

"Do you think this is what I should wear to the interview, Helga?" she asked.

Helga walked over and inspected the suit. "It's looks to me like its fine," she said. "It just needs a little ironing, that's all. Besides, it's the only suit you have, mom."

Miriam also found the white blouse that she wore under the jacket as well as her matching high heels.

It had been a few days since she last wore them and she wanted to make sure that they still fit, so she tried them on and walked around the room with them on. "At least my high heels are fine," she said.

Continuing to pick through closet, Miriam pulled out three pairs of pantyhose and showed them to Helga. The pairs were tan, black and white.

"Mom, you never wore pantyhose before," advised Helga. "Don't you think you should think about wearing pantyhose before actually wearing them?"

Miriam sighed at the thought of her daughter's suggestion and sat back down on the bed.

"You're right, Helga," she said. "But, I just want to look nice, that's all. If I was doing this with your father, he would scorn me for doing something like this."

"But you looked nice when you filled in for him at the Emporium," reminded Helga. "You didn't wear pantyhose to work then and you shouldn't wear them now. But, if you want to wear them, go with the tan."

Miriam placed the tan pantyhose on the bed.

"Be warned, Mr. Simmons said that you can get a run in them," Helga advised.

Miriam then walked back over to the closet and began digging around again. Miriam pulled out a white lace slip from the closet and laid it on the bed along with a white bra and white panties.

"I might as well wear full underwear," Miriam said. "This is only a once in a lifetime thing and I don't want my suit to get ruined."

After a few minutes, Helga and Miriam looked at the suit and undergarments that Miriam would wear to the interview. By the time they finished, it was already late into the night.

"Well, mom, I think you are all set for the interview tomorrow," said Helga. "I am pretty sure dad would say the same thing right now."

Miriam was happy but sighed at the same time. "Yes, he would honey," she replied. "I might as well put everything away if he was in here telling me I shouldn't take this chance."

Helga was surprised at this. "Why would you say that?" she asked.

"I don't know," replied Miriam. "Maybe I am just nervous, that's all." Helga placed her hand on Miriam's and looked at her.

"Listen to me," she said. "When you filled in for dad, I saw you a positive light, a light that I have never seen before in. Now, I want you to be happy at something you love and I will be there at your side tomorrow."

Miriam and Helga hugged again and Helga got up to go to bed.

"Rest up, mom," she advised. "We have a big day tomorrow."

As Helga left, Miriam looked at her cranberry suit and sighed, knowing how tomorrow was going to decide how to chart her course for her family's life as well proving to her big shot husband that she can be an active member of society and bring as much to the table as him. Tomorrow, was only a matter of time away and fortunately, Bob had an early morning meeting, so tomorrow would be just her and Helga on the most important day of her life.


	3. The Morning of the Interview

Chapter 3

The morning of the interview

Miriam woke up the day of the interview with a fire in her eyes. She knew what was on the line here: making a better life for herself, a better life for Helga and most importantly, proving to Bob that she can work instead of just being a housewife and giving in to Bob's demands. She spent most of the early morning ironing her cranberry suit, making sure she got out as many wrinkles as possible. As she ironed, she was thinking to herself of how Helga had been supportive of her despite her normal sour attitude.

"Maybe this whole interview thing somehow made us both realize the truth," Miriam thought to herself. "If we look at the positives instead of the negatives, then maybe things will be better for us."

Taking the suit from the iron, Miriam went back into her room to shower. Every little thing she did to prepare herself for this moment was critical; one screw up could ruin everything. Meanwhile, Helga had gotten out of bed and poured herself a bowl of cereal. She could see that Miriam had already gotten a head start on preparations as she could see the ironing board set up.

"Looks I got the happy Miriam back," she said to herself. "I just hope it doesn't go to her head like that one night." Helga was thinking of the night she went to the studio at the Beeper Emporium when her mom just told her to go away. By the time things were all said and done, Helga was worried Miriam had permanently changed. However, Miriam saw her behavior on film and made up with Helga right then and there. Realizing for a second that Miriam would act that way again, Helga once again remembered what Miriam said afterwards: that she would always be there for Helga, no matter what.

Back upstairs, Miriam had just gotten out of the shower and was now wearing her white lace slip over a white bra and white panties. She was wearing her full underwear like she wanted to for modesty. One thing her mother always taught her was to always wear full underwear for special occasions. Now, she was sitting at her vanity doing her make up. As she started, she heard Helga knock on the door.

"Come in, Helga," Miriam called. Helga came in and sat on the bed looking at her mother through the reflection in the mirror.

"Morning mom," she said. "Are you feeling okay about this?" Miriam looked at her daughter through the mirror as she continued to put on her face.

"Well, I did have a nightmare last night," she replied.

"What was the nightmare?" Helga asked. "You never have nightmares."

Miriam stopped what she was doing and turned to face Helga.

"Well, I didn't drink any smoothies last night, so maybe my mind was acting differently last night." Miriam let out a deep sigh and began to tell Helga what was on her mind.

"Last night, I had a dream that I came back from the interview having gotten the job and I came home to find that your father had already gone to the courts and gotten divorce papers even before I came back from the interview. It seemed like he felt like I was no longer needed here and that he didn't love me anymore. So, the nightmares with me at my knees just crying over how I lost everything: Bob, you Helga, my home, everything."

Helga looked at her mother with content as she got up from the vanity.

"Mom, don't let these things get to you," she said. "I may not think what you think, but I do know that you can prove Dad wrong."

Miriam knew what her daughter had said, she can prove Bob wrong.

Just then, the phone rang and Miriam got up to answer.

"Hello," she answered, worrying it would be Bob, but it wasn't.

"Yes, this is Miriam. Yes? That is fine, thank you." She hung the phone up and looked back at Helga.

"Who was that?" she asked.

"That was Wal-Mart," Miriam answered. "They pushed out the interview to this afternoon. Now, what am I going to do?"

Miriam was now beginning to get nervous, but then Helga had an idea.

"Mom, maybe you can go over to the church and tell Father Lawrence how you feel," she suggested as she walked over to put her suit on. "I think maybe you should have a clear mind before going on with this interview."

Miriam looked at her daughter and sighed.

"You're right, Helga," she confessed as she grabbed her white blouse. "Maybe I am overreacting somewhat."

"Mom, I want you to remember something before you put your suit on," said Helga as Miriam slid on her blouse. "Sometimes I may act mean and tough because of issues like this, but deep down; I do need to reach in and say to myself, 'Helga, you can do this, Helga, you can do this.' Just think of your suit as that confidence transferring to you. Never let these things get to you."

Miriam took in Helga's words as she grabbed her cranberry skirt.

"Helga, you're right," Miriam responded. "Maybe putting this suit on would give me that outer confidence." Miriam slid her skirt on and tucked her blouse in before pulling up the zipper in the back and smoothing her skirt out in front of the mirror.

"But, you are right about Father Lawrence," she continued. "Maybe before I go in, I should listen to what he has to say." Miriam then walked over and grabbed her suit jacket, sliding it on before buttoning her jacket and the top of her blouse to complete her look.

"You do have plenty of time before the interview," advised Helga. "Why don't you call and schedule a small meeting?"

Miriam liked the idea. "Sure," she said as she slid on her cranberry high heels. "I can call to meet with him right after I drop you off at school."

A little while later, Miriam, now fully dressed in the cranberry suit she wore at the beeper emporium, came downstairs and grabbed her purse and suitcase while Helga grabbed her backpack and lunchbox. During the short drive over to P.S. 118, Miriam took Helga's words to heart and called Father Lawrence for a meeting on her cell phone. She would go in just before the interview and clear the air of all her nerves about this whole interview thing. As Miriam pulled up to Helga's school, Helga had one more thing to say to Miriam.

"I'll be thinking of you," she said. "I hope you learn about what I said and that Friar Lawrence helps you through this."

"Thanks for your support, Helga," Miriam said and they hugged and kissed one last time before Helga got out of the car and Miriam drove away. Now Miriam was alone and after a short meeting with the priest, she would ready to tackle the interview and prove to Bob that she can work. It was now only a matter of time.


	4. Spiritual Guidance

Chapter 4

Spiritual Guidance

With her daughter now at the confines of P.S. 118, Miriam now focused her attention on getting spiritual guidance from Father Lawrence. As she drove towards the church, she passed by the Beeper Emporium and remembered her brief time there, how happy she was to be a working mom before things went out of control on her relationship with Helga.

"I hope Bob is going to appreciate what happens to me if I get this job," she said to herself. "I'll show him I can be a hard worker and a devoted wife and mother at the same time."

She continued to make her towards the church and came across St. John's church, the place of worship for the Pataki family. It was a beautiful brown brick building with a bell tower that showed gold wedding bells high above. Miriam had not regularly been to church in almost 10 years. Sure, she would attend when Helga had Sunday school when she was younger. But, Miriam never really embraced God's love for her. Now was a perfect opportunity to visit God and sort of give her guidance on this important day of her life.

Walking into the church, the only sounds she could hear were the sounds of her cranberry high heels tapping on the floor as she walked and the sounds of an organ being tuned up. The cranberry suit Miriam was wearing made her stand out among the drab colors of the church as she sat in the front pew and bowed her head in prayer. Miriam began to pray for God to watch over her during this interview that she was about to go through.

As Miriam prayed, she heard a voice coming from a room right next to the altar.

"I've been expecting you, Miriam," called a voice. Miriam lifted her head and looked around to finding the voice.

"Who is there?" she called out to the voice hearing it, but not seeing who was there. Walking towards the source of the voice, Miriam entered a small room and saw a small chair next to a small brown barrier with a small door on it.

"It's me, Miriam, Father Lawrence," said the voice. "Come in, sit down."

Hesitant at first, Miriam walked over to the chair and sat down, pulling her skirt down so that her slip didn't show. Miriam couldn't see Father Lawrence, but she remembered that Father Lawrence had a grandfatherly look to him, always wore glasses, and had white hair.

"Now, Miriam," Father Lawrence began. "You asked for a meeting because you are about to make a big step in your life. "

Miriam took a long sigh and responded to what he said to her. "I am taking part in a job interview today, Father," she replied. "But I am not here because of that. I am here because I want God to tell Bob that I can be at his level of commitment to the workforce."

Father Lawrence listened contently on the other side of the barrier.

"A couple of days ago," Miriam began. "Bob threw his back out while getting hot sauce from a high shelf in our kitchen. As a result, he couldn't go to work so I filled in for him and I loved the job so much, that I became a permanent substitute for him until he got better. During my time, I saw a change in Helga and we became closer to one another, much like when I was around my first daughter, Olga, who is now living in Alaska. However, it all started when I became so involved in the job that I neglected Helga and one night when she needed me the most, I told her to go away and just go do her homework or something. I managed to find Helga in the park and apologized to her for my actions. Ever since then, she has been supportive of me and last night, she helped me prepare for today."

From the other side, Father Lawrence spoke next.

"You must remember, Miriam, that Helga is in desperate need of a motherly touch," he said. "Over the years, I have noticed a rebelling sign in her that I often get concerned about. Perhaps one way for you to get closer to Helga is to keep the connection strong and never neglect her severely like you did that night. It's important to see that a connection would strengthen the relationship to the fullest extent. Whenever Helga runs into trouble, you must be there for her regardless of whether you get this job or not."

Hearing all this from Father Lawrence made Miriam realize her error from that night at the commercial shooting.

"Now, then," he continued. "You also had something important to say about Bob, is that true?" Miriam took a deep breath and sighed, knowing this would not be easy to talk about.

"Yes, I did father," she replied. "Bob doesn't think that I should take this job because he thinks I belong at home, being a housewife. I have been married to him for 13 years and during that time, I was his housekeeper, taking care of him; making his meals; doing his clothes; gave him two beautiful daughters and how did he thank me? He never thanked me nor appreciated what I did for him and as a result, instead of turning to my family for advice, I took it to the bottle and became a depression induced alcoholic. Father, I sacrificed everything I did in my youth for this man and now I have an opportunity to show him that I can be the hard working businesswoman I can be. I want to be the one that tells him that if you can do it, I can do better. "

Miriam stopped for a moment to catch her breath and then resumed. "But, I am afraid of what happens if I don't get this job, Father? Should I try again or just stay where I am: in the home drinking smoothies every day and feeling sorry for myself?"

"Well, my child," replied Father Lawrence. "There is a wise saying that is known as 'If at first you don't succeed, try and try again.' I want you to remember that the world is full of opportunities out there. I have seen you grow into a beautiful young woman, Miriam and I want you to know that God will work in his mysterious ways to make sure you are successful in your quest today. I don't know if you remember my child, but I remember telling you the story of Lazarus and the Rich Man when you were younger. In that story, Lazarus was the beggar who was at the Rich Man's gate begging to be fed from the scraps that fell from the rich man's table. One day, Lazarus died of a heart attack while at the gate and was welcomed into heaven with the promise of treasure that was greater than any man or woman could have on Earth. But, he had to suffer through his illnesses to get there. As for the Rich Man, he died in an accident one day and was condemned to the pits of hell. He pleaded to be taken to heaven, but he had done so much evil to Lazarus that he couldn't be accepted. Knowing his fate was sealed, he wanted Lazarus to go to his brothers and get them to change their ways, but heaven couldn't send him because his brothers had the teachings of Moses and the prophets and if they couldn't be persuaded by them, they couldn't be persuaded by anyone, even someone raised from the dead. "

Miriam took this story very hard as she wanted her family to be together, even onto heaven, but she is now afraid Bob will end up like the rich man and be condemned into hell for eternity. She felt like shedding a tear, but she didn't want to ruin her makeup, so she stayed strong.

"What can I do to change his ways, father?" she asked.

"Well, Miriam," Father Lawrence replied. "After the interview, go home to him and confront him over what has happened to you today. Tell him that this whole job interview thing is a way of saving him from the pits of hell so that you will get him to change his ways. Tell him that if he does not change, he will one day regret everything that you gave him, everything. Do you understand, my child?"

Miriam took another deep breath and sighed. "Yes, I understand, father. "

"Good," replied Father Lawrence. "You have the support of me and Helga, now you must have the support of your husband if you are to complete your quest."

With that, Father Lawrence emerged from the other side of the barrier and Miriam smiled at this, getting up from the chair and hugging him.

"Thank you for everything, father," she sighed happily.

"I will always be here for you, my child," he said. "You must remember that."

"I understand, father," she replied, breaking away from him so she did not wrinkle her cranberry suit.

"Now, go forth and remember what I said," said Father Lawrence. "By the way, you look beautiful in that cranberry suit."

"I will father and thank you for the compliment," replied Miriam. "Its not everyday I wear this and I promise that I will wear this every Sunday starting now as a thank you for helping me."

With that, Miriam walked out of the church knowing she had clear conscience of what now lies ahead.


	5. The Interview

Chapter 5

The interview

The spiritual guidance she had received from Father Lawrence gave Miriam the confidence she needed to move forward with the interview. It was a short ten minute drive from the church to Wal-Mart, which was located on the outskirts of town. Upon arrival, Miriam could see it was a clean location with the cart people wearing a blue vest over everyday clothes. She didn't matter what job she would get, what did matter was proving to Bob she could work, nothing more and nothing less. Miriam parked her car, grabbed her purse and suitcase and walked inside.

"This is a very clean location," Miriam said to herself. Miriam then walked over to the service desk and spoke to the manager, who was named Kim.

"Hello," Miriam said. "I am here for a 12:00 interview with Anita." The manager checked her schedule and looked back up to Miriam.

"Ah, yes, Miriam Pataki," she said. "Anita is our store manager and she will see you in her office." Miriam took a gulp and exhaled.

"Are you nervous?" Kim asked.

"A little bit," Miriam replied.

"I wouldn't worry," she said. "Anita is a very nice person to work with and even I was nervous for my first interview, but just look forward to what is coming when you get the job."

Miriam acknowledged this and was sent to the manager's office which was located on a mezzanine above the store.

As she approached the office, she once again remembered what Father Lawrence had said. Just then, a woman in her late 30's emerged from the office with brown hair and was dressed in a brown pantsuit.

"You must be Miriam Pataki?" she asked.

"Yes, I am Miriam Pataki," Miriam replied.

"I'm Anita Rogers, store manager here at Wal-Mart."

The two of them shook hands and walked into Anita's office. The office was a big room and Anita's desk was viewable right outside the door. Anita shut the door and Miriam sat down again straightening her skirt out to keep her slip from being exposed.

"All right, Miriam," began Anita. "The purpose of this interview is for you to introduce yourself to me and why you think you should be a valuable asset to our company. I will now ask my first question, what was your previous experience?"

"Well, I started out as waitress in my high school years," Miriam replied. "I worked in my uncle's diner where I learned the values of hard work and dedication. My uncle also taught me the importance of serving your customers, not yourself."

Anita sat back in her chair and took in the first question. "I see Miriam," she said. "That you understand the cardinal rule of customer service: you serve them and not yourself. Now then, my next question to you is your available to work at any time of the day or night?"

"Yes, I am available at any time," replied Miriam. "For 13 years, I have been a housewife 24 hours a day; 7 days a week because my husband Bob believes that I should be at home taking care of our two daughters and running the house." "And what does Bob do if you don't mind my asking?" Anita said. "Because it seems to me like he is a control freak." Miriam seemed to notice what Anita was talking about and continued her story.

"My husband is head of Big Bob's Beeper Emporium," Miriam continued. "He goes around selling beepers to people and that he gets all the praise and glory because of his name being on the product. You see, Anita, a few days ago, he popped his back and I reluctantly volunteered to run the emporium. I enjoyed it so much, I went back for a brief time and I found out to myself that I can make a difference in what I do. But, in the past, I have tried to talk to Bob about it and he just ignores it, saying I should be like Edith Bunker on 'All in the Family.' But I refuse to let that saying get in my head."

Anita was amazed by what she just heard out of Miriam's mouth. If she hired Miriam, she would be hiring a really dedicated worker not just to her company, but to Miriam herself as well.

"So you see, Anita," she continued. I tried to not let the saying get to me, but I couldn't stop it. As a result, I became an alcoholic and every day I just felt sorry for myself. " Miriam stopped to dry a tear that was trickling down her face. Anita handed her a Kleenex and Miriam dried her eyes with it.

"I know how you feel, dear," she replied. "I was in the same position you were in when I was a young woman. I came from a drug dealing husband that intended to have me sell drugs with him. He was training me to become a drug dealer like him and he even wanted our child to be a drug dealer when he grew up. I tried to escape and when I miscarried our child, I told him coldly that I would no longer be with him and that I wanted to do something I enjoyed doing, not him."

Anita took a long deep sigh and looked at Miriam with content. "So I left him, joined Wal-Mart and I worked my way up to the position I am in today. If you join this company, Miriam, I will help you become the woman you are inside: someone who wants to not only do better for herself and her family, but also to prove to someone like your husband that you have the ability to work and do something more than just being a housewife who doesn't want to do things she doesn't want to do."

Anita showed her left hand to Miriam and smiled at her.

"Miriam Pataki, it is my pleasure to welcome you to Wal-Mart. You are now a member of this company."

Miriam could not believe what she had just heard. She had just been accepted to Wal-Mart and she didn't even have to do all the questions she had been giving to. They shook hands and Miriam was overjoyed at the news.

"I am so honored to work alongside you," Miriam cried happily. "I promise to be a dedicated member of this company and I am lucky to have you as my boss."

"I am going to have you start tomorrow, Miriam," she said. "Go home tonight and get a good night's rest. You have a big day of training tomorrow."

With that, the interview concluded and Miriam walked out of the office thanking Anita as she walked away. Walking back to her car, she felt nothing but pure happiness right now and as she drove away, she knew that there was one last thing that needed to be done. She had to face Bob and force him to accept her as a working mother. It would not be easy, but she knew it needed to be done.


	6. Confrontation and Ultimatum

Chapter 6

Confrontation and Ultimatum

Bob spent his entire day at the beeper emporium doing what he did best: sell beepers, beepers and more beepers. A day of spending with clients and customers continued to flourish in what he did best. After a long day's work, he came home to find nothing had been done in the house.

"I can't believe that Miriam," he grumbled under his breath. "Did she spend all day just lying around the house or what?" He then saw Helga walk in the door after taking the bus home from school.

"Young lady, where is your mother?" he asked.

"Dad, you seem like something's bother you," noted Helga. "If you are looking for mom, she had her interview today, remember?"

Bob could not believe what he had just heard. He thought that phone call the night before was a joke and he thought he was right on it.

"When your mother gets home," he growled. "I am going to teach her a lesson she will never forget. She knows better than to leave the house unattended for a whole day."

Helga was worried about her father's temperament. Bob was known in the Pataki household for having a fierce temper, but this was worse. It made Helga scared and nervous.

"Dad, maybe you should go back out for a while and calm down," Helga suggested. "Mom's trying to make a life for her and for us. Can't you accept that?" Bob saw Miriam drive in from the interview and turned back to Helga with a fire in his eyes.

"Helga, when your mother walks through that door, I want you to go to your room and stay there," he said.

"Why?" asked Helga. "You're just going to be mad at her for doing something she wants to do." Bob had heard enough and pointed to the upstairs.

"Very well, then," she said. "But you'll be sorry, you know." With that, Helga left and Bob stood at the front door waiting for Miriam to enter.

After the short drive over from Wal-Mart, Miriam turned off the car and walked up the stairs to the house. This was supposed to be a time of celebration for her and instead she knew Bob was going to be tough to get through. She opened the door and found her husband standing right in front of her with an angry look on his face. Miriam shut the door and saw Bob still standing there angrily.

"Miriam, where the hell were you today?" he asked. "There was nothing in this house that was even done today. The dishwasher was not run or emptied, you didn't tape my soap operas and most importantly, you didn't take my suit to the cleaners. I have a very important meeting with the Buffalo guys and now I don't have anything to wear to it." Miriam walked over to her husband and looked at him straight in the eye.

"You know, Bob, I was going to do all that," she said. "But, if you remember, I had a job interview today at Wal-Mart. An interview that you were totally against on because for 13 years, I had nothing besides the house and my smoothies."

"What's that got to do with what is going on right now?" he asked grumpily. "We made an agreement before we got married that if we married, I would make the money; you would stay at home and be the housewife, like Edith Bunker was." Miriam grew impatient over the Edith Bunker issue that her husband brought up over the last 13 years of their marriage.

"Again, with the Edith Bunker issue," Miriam said mockingly. "Bob, when are you going to accept the fact I can make a difference in this family? I proved that by filling in for you at your place of business while you were nursing your back." Bob stormed over to the chair and sat down in front of the television, turning it up to try and drown out Miriam.

"Television is not going to hide you from me, B," remarked Miriam. "I have more matters to talk about right now, and if you think you are going to ignore me, you can think again."

Bob rolled his eyes and turned back towards his wife. "In fact, you can take your suit to the cleaners in the morning and it's too bad that you are without anything to wear tomorrow," added Miriam.

"Miriam Elizabeth Pataki," Bob growled, his patience running thin. "I run this house and if I feel like taking my suit to the cleaners, I will do it whenever I please. That means you do it for me, whether you have a job or not. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to watch the news and you need to make some dinner."

Miriam stomped over to the chair and took the remote from his hands.

"What's your problem, Miriam?" he asked with disgust. "I asked you to get dinner started, now go do it!" Miriam was not taking this and she had now reached her breaking point.

"Now, you listen to me, ROBERT JOSEPH PATAKI!" Miriam shouted smashing the remote on the ground. "Every time I see you go out to work, I have always grown frustrated over the fact that you have a successful life ahead of you and that I have never had anything to fall back on. All I worked at was as a waitress and as a substitute head of your beeper business as well as raising and taking care of our two daughters. I did a very nice thing for you and this is how you thank me after all I had done for you when you were nursing your back injury? I thought you would be happy that I got my first job in several years, but you had to make a big three ring circus out of it."

"Oh, I made the three ring circus of it all," retorted Bob, rising out of the chair. "Taking you on all those nice vacations when we were dating and when we had Olga and Helga, the honeymoon we had at St. Croix. I suppose I made a three ring circus of it all. Maybe it would have been better if we were never married at all."

From upstairs in her room, Helga gasped at what she just heard. As much she loved her parents, getting a divorce over something like her mother getting a job was, of course, unthinkable.

"Is that what you want, Bob?" she said. "Our marriage ending because I thought I was doing something better for this family. Is that it, then?"

Bob sat back down in the chair and looked back at the screen.

"Miriam, you have until Sunday to quit the job," he demanded. "You need to realize that I am the breadwinner in this family and you contribute to being a housewife. You can work tomorrow, but then I want you to quit and come back here where you belong."

"Then why don't come over to Wal-Mart and actually see me work?" retorted Miriam. "I bet going over to Wal-Mart will make you see why I am a smart, beautiful and dedicated woman who wants to build a future for this family just as much as you." Miriam stormed out of the room and walked upstairs to their bedroom to pack up her everyday purple dress and shoes and walked back downstairs towards the door.

"Where are you going, Miriam?" asked Bob. "I'm going to a hotel close to Wal-Mart," she replied. "I can't stand being here the night before I start my first step towards a better life. Helga has school at 9:00am; make sure she is ready by then."

But before Bob could answer, Miriam slammed the door and walked back towards the car, then she came back up.

"One more thing, if you want to see me in this house again," she said. "You will accept me as a working mother or you'll start making dinners by yourself from now on." Miriam then slammed the door and walked back down to her car. Bob ignored her behavior and put the batteries back in the remote to watch television.

Now, driving away from her home, she could see the sad face of Helga, from her upstairs window. Miriam was even thinking about turning around, but then she realized that going back would just send her back to Bob and they would fight again. Now, her marriage and her family were on the line. But Miriam was not backing down on this journey she took so long to take. Even the meeting with Father Lawrence caused her to not back down. She was going to take this job, no matter what was going to happen.


	7. Kidnapped

Chapter 7

Kidnapped

Miriam continued to drive farther and farther away from her home. Her fight with Bob to make him realize what she was doing had put everything she had on the line. It was going to take a miracle or three to get him to change. She remembered everything Father Lawrence had taught her at their spiritual meeting earlier in the day, that story of Lazarus and the Rich Man and everything that followed.

"I wonder if Bob can be changed?" she said to herself, sighing deeply. "When we married, we vowed to love one another till death do us part. But I never thought that would be necessary with his ego."

The area that Miriam was driving was a lot different than when she was driving to Wal-Mart earlier in the day. It was an area of mostly abandoned buildings and strip joints. All she wanted to do was to get out of the area and fast.

"This doesn't look safe," she said. "I'd better get out of here."

Suddenly, Miriam heard a loud bang and her car began to slow down.

"What was that?" she said surprisingly. "No, come on! Come on!" But it was no use. Her car sputtered and slowed down right by an old gas station that had not been used for a long time. Miriam tried to restart the car, but it was no use. It couldn't restart and she wondered if Triple AAA would be open this time of night. Reaching into her purse, Miriam grabbed her car phone and tried to call Triple AAA.

"Hello?" called a voice. "Hi, it's Miriam Pataki," replied Miriam. "I am in the Bergdorf section of town and my car stalled. Could you come out here and service me?" The man on the other side didn't seem to care what she had to say, but complied eventually.

"Yeah, ma'am, " he said. "It will be about twenty minutes at the most."

"Thank you," replied Miriam. "I can't wait twenty minutes now," she said to herself. "Maybe I will call Bob and-," She was about to call him, but no. She didn't want to talk to him because he was not going to accept her for who she really was.

Then suddenly, she saw a shadow coming from behind her car. Miriam began to get nervous as the shadow crept closer followed by two more shadows. The shadows revealed to be three young men, wearing gang attire walking towards Miriam's car.

"Hey, lady, need some help?" called the first man. Miriam ignored him and locked the doors to her car.

"Whoo wee," second the second man. "Doesn't she look pretty?"

"You said it," said the third man. "Who's up for a little fun with this girl?"

"I am," chuckled the first man. "Me too," said the second as they put masks on. Miriam could see the men were smiling at her with lust in their eyes. She tried to call the police with her phone, but before she did, one of the men punched the passenger door window of her car and grabbed her hand. Miriam could see now she was being attacked and most likely going to be violated.

"Let go of me!" she screamed as the men pulled her from the passenger side of the car.

"You are coming with us, lady!" shouted the third man. "We are going to have a little fun with you tonight, pretty lady!" They managed to pull Miriam from the car and whatever they wanted to do with her remained to be seen.

Meanwhile, Bob was at back at home still watching television. By now, he was thinking of how the way he had treated Miriam in their marriage. For the first time in 13 years, he now wondered maybe if Miriam should now have a chance at performing at a job. Their fight earlier had opened a light in Bob's eyes that maybe he was holding Miriam back and now he was thinking of apologizing to her. "I don't know what the hell I was thinking," he said to himself.

"Maybe Miriam was right. I was been hard on her and maybe I can consider Olga to being my favorite. I love all my girls, I just didn't show it that's all. Maybe I should go over to the motel and tell Miriam I am sorry."

He turned the television off and grabbed his coat to make the drive down to the motel. As he drove to the motel, he made a strange sight out in the distance.

"That's funny," he thought. "Why is Miriam's car near that gas station?" But he didn't dare see what was happening next. A police car approached her car and next to the car was a triple AAA tow truck. Realizing something was terribly wrong; Bob got out of the car and ran over to what was happening. "Hey, officer," he cried. "What's going on?" The officer turned to him with haste.

"Are you Robert Pataki?" he asked. "Of course, I'm Robert Pataki of Big Bob's beepers. Where's my wife?" Bob could see that the passenger door window had been smashed and only Miriam's purse and suitcase remained in the car. This made him grow really concerned for her for the first time in his life.

"What happened here?" he said. "What happened to Miriam?" The officer handed him a slip of paper with a note written on it. Bob read as the officer stood next to him:

"_Dear Big Bob,_

_We want you to listen and listen well._

_We _have_ your wife with us as a way of getting _

_back at you for taking our jobs away and ruining our lives._

_If you ever want to see your precious Miriam again, you _

_will bring a million dollars and the beepers that you promised_

_to give us, but never did. You have until midnight tomorrow._

_Fail, and your wife will die naked and alone._

_Love,_

_Moe, Larry and Curly Jones."_

Bob looked down in horror. He knew those brothers from when they were interns at the emporium. He remembered that they were fired for attempting to steal a brand new set of beepers that were not to be released to the public for another few weeks. As a result, he fired them and only then realized that they came from low income families and realized that they only disguised themselves as interns when they really were not properly educated.

"Mr. Pataki, you must let us find her," said the officer. "These brothers are armed and very dangerous, and who knows what they may be capable of."

"How do you know about them?" asked Bob.

"We have arrested them in past for a series of crimes," said the officer.

"They are wanted for a series of murders and kidnappings in the area. We even found out from an unidentified source that they were planning some type of massacre in the coming days at the local Wal-Mart."

By this moment, Bob had to do something. Everything he said to Miriam earlier that night didn't matter now. He ran back into his car and started the engine.

"Mr. Pataki, where are you going?" cried the officer.

"I'm going to rescue my wife," he replied. Skidding the tires, Bob raced off into the night knowing that not only his wife was in danger, but also her future place of employment and his place of business were in jeopardy. He had to find Miriam and fast before it was too late.


	8. In Captivity

Chapter 8

In Captivity

Opening her eyes, Miriam had found herself inside the basement of what appeared to be an abandoned warehouse in the outskirts of town. She remembered after being dragged from her car, she was punched in the face by one of the men and knocked unconscious. From there, she was placed in the trunk of their car and driven to this location. Now, she was in the basement on the night before she was supposed to start her job at Wal-Mart: the job she had dreamed of getting ever since her time at the Emporium came to an end. The area she was in was dirty and her cranberry suit was dirtied from being in the trunk of the car and now sitting down in the basement had put more dust on it.

"What's going to happen to me?" she thought to herself. Miriam tried to think about her future, if she were to ever get out of this situation. She thought that Bob would not even bother to rescue her, even after the way she had been treated by him. All she could think about was him, Helga, Olga and all the Pataki's.

Suddenly, she heard the sound of the basement door opening and the sound of footfalls coming down the stairs.

"Miriam, time to come up for a little visit," said Curly. "I see you are awake now." Curly pulled Miriam up the stairs of the basement and was led up to an office where Moe, the older brother, was sitting.

"Sit down, please," he said. Miriam hesitated, but Moe pulled out a knife. "You die if there is any trouble out of you," he said coldly. "Now sit down."

Miriam sat down in a chair that was across from the desk. She looked nervously at Moe's eyes as she remembered him and his brothers from their time at the Beeper Emporium.

"I don't want any trouble Moe," Miriam said quietly. "What do you want from me? I'll give you anything you want." Moe grabbed a cigar and lit a match to it, blowing smoke in Miriam's face.

"Miriam, my lady," he said. "You are here because my brothers and I have some unfinished business with Big Bob."

Miriam was still puzzled by what he meant. She remembered that they were fired for unknown reasons, but that was not the truth.

"I remember you three caused an accident of some sorts and Bob fired you because of it," Miriam said. "Ever since then, you had a vendetta against him and my family. I'll have you know I was recently hired today as an employee at Wal-Mart and I was due to start tomorrow. Are you upset that I am working there? Is that it?"

Moe got up from his chair and walked over towards Miriam, still smoking his cigar. He rustled his fingers through Miriam's blonde hair, undoing the bun and causing her hair to come down.

"No, Miriam," he said. "Ever since we were fired from the Beeper Emporium, we have always had a desire to get back at your husband for what he did. We were after your husband's latest Beeper, the iBeeper, and we would stop at nothing to get it. Bob had been in touch with Apple headquarters in San Francisco about having a release date just in time for Christmas. Our plan was to steal the device from the Emporium and fly it to Mexico, where our contacts down there would make pirated copies of the beeper and we would sell it on the black market. We thought Bob would not find out about our plans, but it was too late. He fired us and was planning to turn us over to the FBI. But, there was news that Bob had been injured at home and that's when you came in Miriam. On our last day, we saw you walk into the emporium, looking beautiful and professional. That's when we knew that the only way to get back at him was to make you our prisoner and get back at him for ruining everything."

Miriam was still not convinced about one particular matter. "But why would you target Wal-Mart?" she asked.

"What would it ever do to you?" Moe slammed his fist down on the desk and growled. "Bob called the manager at Wal-Mart about selling the first 500 copies of the iBeeper just in this town. He was going to get all the glory and the three of us made a pact that if we couldn't get our profits on the iBeeper, no one could and we plotted to kill anyone who got ahold of it."

Miriam gasped in horror at what was just said. The place where she interviewed earlier in the day would be targeted by these three men and that all her future customers would be targeted for death, just because one of her husband's prized beepers would be sold there as a test run.

"But before we carry out our plans Miriam," Moe said. "My brothers and I wanted to do something fun with you." Miriam shuddered at the saying of the word "fun." She knew something was not right when he mentioned that word.

"What are you talking about?" she asked nervously.

"You'll see what I mean," he said. He grabbed Miriam by the scruff of her suit jacket and walked her out of the office.

Leading her upstairs, she was led into a room that had three chairs in front of her and two of the brothers, Larry and Curly were sitting down in them. Moe led Miriam to the center of the room and stuck his knife in her face.

"Take off your clothes," he said. Miriam gasped in horror at what she just heard.

"Is this part of your plan to get back at Bob?" she cried.

"Yes it is, my dear," he said. "You were the Beeper Queen for a while, weren't you?" asked Moe. "Now, we are going to have fun stripping you of your dignity. Now you will take off your clothes for us when we tell you to. Refuse to comply and I will take this knife and cut them off your precious little body. Your husband humiliated us and now we will humiliate you."

Moe walked over to his brothers and sat down in the middle chair with Larry on the left and Moe on the right.

"Start with your shoes," he said. Miriam slid off her cranberry high heels one by one.

"Now remove your jacket," said Moe. Miriam unbuttoned her suit jacket and slid off throwing it on the floor with her high heels.

"Unbutton your blouse," said Larry with a cigar in his mouth. Miriam unbuttoned each button of her blouse and slid it off revealing the top of her white slip.

"Now remove your skirt," said Curly. Miriam placed her hands in the back of her skirt and unzipped it, causing it to slide down. She stepped out and placed it with the rest of her clothes. Now she was standing in front of her husband's former employees wearing nothing but her lace slip.

"Now the slip, Miriam," said Moe, lighting another cigar. "Then we are finished." Miriam lowered each strap of her slip and it slid down leaving her only in her bra and panties.

"That's good, Miriam," said Moe. "Now at the sound of the music, dance for us."

Miriam heard the sound of seductive music coming from the background and she began to dance seductively for her audience. She tried to hold back tears of humiliation in front of her captors. For twenty long minutes, she danced for them.

Afterwards, Moe led her back down to the basement and threw her dirtied cranberry suit and shoes downstairs with her.

"Now, you will remain here in the basement until your husband accepts our demands," he said. "Then you are free to go your way. I'm sorry to say that you won't make your job tomorrow, Miriam; it is the fault of your husband. If I were you, I'd start praying that things turn out all right because if Bob doesn't give us what we want. You both will pay the price of his error. So good night, because we are going to do the same thing tomorrow and every day after that until he gives in." Moe laughed evilly as he slammed the door to the basement.

Now, Miriam was alone and cold in the confines of her prison. Laying down on a soft yet old mattress, she cried and cried until she was asleep knowing she may never start her job and never see her family again.

"Oh, Bob, I know you're angry at me, but please find me," she said through tears of sorrow and fear, thinking that Bob was still mad at her for what happened earlier in the day, little did she know that Bob did care for her and when she woke up from her deep sleep, she would be in a different place than the confines of a basement.


	9. Out of Harm's Way

Chapter 9

Out of Harm's Way

By the time Miriam awoke from her deep sleep, she found herself in a strange white place. She heard beeps with an IV in her arm and a monitor monitoring her pulse. She found herself in the hospital and no longer in the basement of the abandoned warehouse. She was surprised to find Bob and Helga there, sitting next to her on the bed.

"Mom, you're awake!" Helga cried. "I'm so glad you are all right." Miriam heard her daughter's voice vaguely as she continued to open her eyes.

"Bob, Helga, how did I get here?" she asked groggily. "I remember being in a cold basement of a warehouse and-."

Suddenly, Miriam stopped. Why would Bob be in here now after their argument the day before?

"Bob, how and why did you rescue me?" she asked. Bob knew exactly what Miriam was talking about. In fact, he did feel pretty bad about the way he treated his wife.

"Helga would you mind waiting for me outside?" he asked. "Sure, I'll be outside," she said. Helga left the room and shut the door behind her. Once she was gone, Bob turned to Miriam.

"Miriam," he began. "You were kidnapped by the Jones brothers, former employees of mine. They wanted to get back at me for firing them because they wanted the iBeeper to sell on the black market in Mexico. When I fired them, they wanted revenge and I guess they targeted you to get back at me." Miriam was hearing the same story she heard from the brothers when she was being held captive by them.

"Did they hurt you in anyway?" he asked. Miriam was surprised to be hearing this from someone who didn't even care about whether she worked or not.

"Well," she said. "They did make me strip to my underwear and dance to seductive music." Bob was horrified at what his wife told him. They forced her to remove the suit that Miriam wore when she filled in for him at the Beeper Emporium and made her dance all against her will. The thought of anyone doing this to his family made him shudder at the thought.

"Why would those scumbags do these to you, Miriam?" he asked. "They know better than that."

"They threatened to kill me if I didn't comply with them," continued Miriam. "So I did. But not before finding out that they were planning to attack Wal-Mart because they were selling your beepers."

All what Bob was hearing made him shudder at the thought despite his negative attitude towards Miriam, but of course, Miriam still had one more question for him.

"How and why did you rescue me after our fight yesterday?"

"Miriam," he began. "When I found out you were missing and being held against your will by these guys, I went with the police to my beeper emporium. I picked up the iBeeper and brought it to them at the warehouse. I went inside wearing a bulletproof vest underneath my shirt and it was only when I handed it to them that the police moved in and arrested them."

"Are they going to be in jail for a long time?" Miriam asked.

"Yes, they are," said Bob. "They plead guilty this morning for kidnapping you and plotting to commit murder at Wal-Mart and were sentenced to life imprisonment without parole." Bob took a deep sigh and a sip from a glass of water before moving on to the next part of his story.

"After they were arrested, a few SWAT members and I searched for you and we found you down in the basement only in your underwear. I tried to wake you up, but I couldn't. We thought that you may have been drugged, so we brought you to the hospital for observation." Now, Miriam was very surprised that Bob would do this for her, even after everything that happened the day before.

"They think you may have been given a sleeping drug that would have kept you asleep for a long time," continued Bob. "The drug was a gas that was found in the vents of the basement where you were in." Miriam raised her bed up further and continued to look Bob in the eye.

"Bob, was Wal-Mart notified of this?" Miriam asked. "I was due to start today at my new job, you know."

Bob knew exactly what Miriam was talking about.

"Yes, I was very much aware you were due to start today," he said.

"I really want to take back everything what I have ever done to you and everything I said to you yesterday after you came back from your interview at Wal-Mart. You do deserve to work in the workforce and that it took me a while to realize that." Miriam knew her husband was all but forgiving her for snapping at her like that just because she had gotten a job to Wal-Mart and that he thought she belonged in the home taking care of the house.

"Well, if you are going to forgive me for what you said," she said. "Then I accept your apology, Robert." Bob smiled at this and the husband and wife hugged it out for a good few minutes before breaking up.

"Well, Miriam, I might as well let you rest," he said. "And I promise to never let you into harm's way again and I really mean that."

Miriam was flattered by what Bob has said and with that as he left the room, she felt that Bob, her husband of 13 years and father of her two children, had finally forgiven her for all the misery that he put her throughout their marriage with it all culminating into the argument that they had following her interview with Wal-Mart. Now, she was looking forward to getting out of the hospital and starting her job. But most importantly of all, she would be going back to being with her beloved family.


	10. Miriam and Bob thank the Lord

Chapter 10

Miriam and Bob thank the Lord

A few days after being kidnapped and humiliated on the night after her interview by thugs who, who used to work for her husband at the Beeper Emporium, Miriam was now ready to start her new job. She wore her blue Wal-Mart company vest over her usual purple dress and shoes and although a little nervous, she was ready to start this long overdue chapter of her life. Arriving at work, Miriam spent her first day bagging items and learning the basics of the company and helping out those who needed it the most, like the elderly and the handicapped.

Her new boss, Anita, was very impressed with over how Miriam was working in the first few days of her new job.

"Miriam, you have been really stepping up in the short time you have been here," she said to Miriam one day in her office. It was the end of Miriam's first week at Wal-Mart. "All of us here at Wal-Mart are very impressed with what you have done."

"Thank you, Anita," Miriam replied. "It's an honor to work here and just do something in my life." However, Anita was not done thanking Miriam yet.

"Now, Miriam," she said next. "I wanted to also thank you for uncovering a dastardly plot to attack this business."

"I suppose you know my husband, Bob Pataki of the Beeper Emporium," replied Miriam. "The one who I told you about that didn't want me to work, but eventually did."

"Yes, your husband," Anita continued. "I told him about what we talked about in the interview and he replied that after the ordeal you went through, he felt that maybe you do deserve a chance after all in the workforce. He just needed time to see it."

Anita took a sip of coffee and continued.

"Finally, those men who kidnapped you were labeled as domestic terrorists," she continued. "They only wanted to make money long before the iBeeper would be released and they would only be giving people have of the product and that is not good business. But, they wanted to kill the people who would buy the product in the test sale that we would have here in a few days. I believe that by kidnapping you, they made a fatal flaw in their plot and ultimately led to their capture and imprisonment."

Given the fact that she had helped not just her husband's beeper business, but her new business, Anita felt that maybe she finally made a major contribution to society even before she started working.

"Well, Anita," Miriam said. "Maybe I had finally done something right after all. It's like you said, it took time." Miriam got up to leave but Anita stopped her for a second.

"Wait, Miriam," she said. "What are you going to do now?"

Miriam turned to face Anita.

"I have someone else very important that I want to thank," replied Miriam.

"Someone who also helped get me to where I am now. I'll see you on Monday."

Miriam left as Anita smiled contently, knowing how much of a dedicated employee Miriam had become.

What Miriam meant by "thanking someone else very important" to her was Father Lawrence, who helped her in persuading Bob to accept her as a working woman. On the first Sunday after her first week, Miriam came into the sanctity and saw Father Lawrence removing the robes he wore during service. Miriam was dressed in her cranberry suit having it dry cleaned from all the filth it had taken during her kidnapping ordeal. A few days earlier, she had promised Father Lawrence she would wear her cranberry suit to church every Sunday as a thank you for helping her get to where she was.

"Miriam, my child," he said. "I see you have something you want to tell me."

"Yes, I do father," Miriam said as she sat down in a chair. "I finally got my job at Wal-Mart."

"That's wonderful, Miriam," he said happily. "I am so proud of you, my child." Just then, Bob entered the sanctity dressed in his church clothes.

"Well, Robert," said Father Lawrence. "I'm glad you could join us. Please, sit down."

Father Lawrence could see the happiness in Bob's face. He felt that Miriam's new job brought out the best in their relationship. "How do you feel about Miriam working?" he asked. "Well, father," said Bob.

"I think that what happened in the past few days made me realize just how important Miriam really is to me and Helga. It just took me time to realize that." Father Lawrence nodded at Bob's remark, knowing how just a few days earlier, he told Miriam that Bob would be going to hell if he didn't change his ways.

"I know I was boneheaded in how I treated you, Miriam," Bob said.

"If I had been more supportive and came to the interview, then maybe you wouldn't have gone through the nightmare that you went through." Miriam knew her husband was forgiving, but she did not want to let her ordeal bring him down.

"Bob, you have to remember," she said. "If I was not kidnapped by those stooges, then their plot would not have been uncovered and many people at Wal-Mart, including my boss, Anita, would have possibly been dead right about now."

"You are absolutely right, Miriam," said Father Lawrence. "I told Miriam about the story of Lazarus and the Rich Man when she was here a few days ago. In the story, the Rich Man died and went to Hell because he was never compassionate to Lazarus in his Earthly life. Both of us felt that if you didn't change your ways, you were going to end up just like the rich man and Miriam would end up like Lazarus."

"You know, it's funny you brought that up Father," said Bob. "Because I remember that story too from my days as a boy." Bob looked at Father Lawrence after thinking for a second and then came to a realization. "Forgive me if I sounding out of my character, but I'm wondering if this was something like 'Lazarus and the Rich Man' in our personal lives."

"You might say that, Bob," remarked Miriam. "But Father Lawrence said that our Lord works in mysterious ways and you might say that what happened to us was him working in his mysterious ways."

"But, you both must also remember," said Father Lawrence. "That the thugs who kidnapped Miriam were supposedly soldiers of the devil and when they die, they will go back to Satan and report to him of what they did to you. But, he will reprimand them for failing to do what they were supposed to do." Miriam gulped with nervousness at what Father Lawrence said next. "Miriam, they were supposed to _rape _you," he said silently.

Bob gasped in horror at what Father Lawrence had just said. "Father, is that what those idiots were planning to do to Miriam?" he asked.

"They tried to carry out the devil's work," continued Father Lawrence. "But a voice inside them, supposedly a traitorous servant of Satan, said to them that they should not carry out his work and they did not."

"Maybe that's why they only made me dance in front of them only in my bra and panties," Miriam said. "Maybe they only wanted Satan to weaken me so that they could attack Wal-Mart."

"Perhaps so," said Father Lawrence. "But the Lord saw what was happening to you and alerted Bob about your situation. " "So that was how you knew I was in trouble, Bob," said Miriam. "That's true, Miriam," he said. "But I really want to not only rescue you from the Jones Brothers, but I also wanted to keep bootlegged copies of the iBeeper from going onto the market."

Miriam was touched by what Bob said next.

"Miriam, I know I was an idiot these many years," he said. "But I wanted to say that I am truly sorry for not being supportive of you during this very important time of your life. I know you did a fantastic job filling in for me when I was injured with my back, but I was just too lazy and slack to take notice of you. I promise that this kind of behavior of mine will never happen again."

A small tear came down Miriam's face and she had to use a handkerchief in her suit jacket to dry her eye.

"And I'm sorry for yelling at you after the interview," Miriam responded. "I know you didn't want me to work, but I wanted us to work together like a normal couple would. I'm glad now you see that." Touched that Miriam finally accepted her apology, Bob grabbed Miriam and they hugged it out.

"Well, all good things come to those who wait," said Father Lawrence. "Maybe now, the both of you can now start pulling your own weight and continue to build what you vowed to each other 13 years ago."

As they got up to leave, Miriam and Bob turned to face Father Lawrence.

"Thank you for the counsel, Father," said Miriam. "Our relationship is stronger now thanks for you."

"Yes, that's true," said Father Lawrence. "Now, you must go and continue that commitment."

With those words, Miriam and Bob hugged Father Lawrence and they left the sanctity, hand in hand, towards whatever future they were heading too knowing that by Miriam getting a job, they were now working together for the first time in their 13 year marriage. But most importantly of all, they were building a future that was far more important for them: the future of the Pataki family.


	11. A Mother's Thanks for her Daughter

Epilogue

"A Mother's Thanks for her Daughter"

It had been only a few days since Miriam had started her new job at Wal-Mart. All that she went through to get there, including the interview process and dealing with three of her husband's coworkers from the beeper emporium had pretty much all paid off for her. It took a few bits of blood, sweat and tears, but Miriam got through it all okay and more importantly, she and Bob were closer together after the events that took place. But, after all was said and done, Miriam still wanted to thank Helga for what she done for her which was getting her to think about getting a job in the first place.

Shortly after she and Bob met with Father Lawrence, Miriam and Helga, still dressed in their church clothes, went over to the park to spend some mother-daughter time together. It was actually the same park where just a week earlier, Helga and Miriam reconciled after Miriam brushed off Helga at the Beeper Emporium.

"Helga, honey," said Miriam as they walked through the park. "Do you think I did a good thing this week, starting this job at Wal-Mart?"

Helga was puzzled at what her mom had to say. "Mom, of course you did a good job," said Helga. "Don't ever doubt yourself that you can do the job. Now that you have a job, I can look up to you more as a role model in my life. Heck, I need one you know."

Long ago, Helga had always thought of Olga as the favorite and that she was kind of the underdog. As a result, Helga distanced herself from Miriam until Miriam went to the Beeper Emporium to fill in for Bob. The two of them walked over to a bench and sat down.

"Helga, I wanted to thank you very much for getting me inspired to do this job," Miriam said. "All my life I wanted to make a life for myself after a life as a swimmer, but your father always held me back because he wanted me to be a housewife and that he always wanted Olga to be the successful one. But, now, he sees that I can be a successful businesswoman just as much as anyone."

"So, what you are saying basically mom is that I can follow in your footsteps one day," remarked Helga. "As long as I don't drift off course like you did."

"That's right, Helga," replied Miriam. "Stay the course and you will do fine in your life and future." Helga took her mother's words to heart right then and there.

"Well, I do have one concern though," she said. "The last time you attempted to have a job. I had that nanny over here and even though she was kind of a road block between us. So while you are working at Wal-Mart, who's going to take care of me after school?"

Miriam looked at Helga with affection.

"Honey, after what nearly happened to me," she said. "Your father is going to step back a little bit from the Beeper Emporium and spend a little time with you. He realizes now that we are more important than his business in more ways than one."

Miriam then took a deep sigh and turned to Helga again.

"Honey, the past few days has brought us both together and I promise you that this is the start of a better life for us as mother and daughter."

"Mom," replied Helga. "I guess you took the words right out of my mouth." With that, the two of them hugged knowing now that all that had happened to them over the past few days had brought all the Pataki's together and made them a stronger, durable family.

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